New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz was ejected from Sunday night’s game against the Chicago Cubs after umpires found a foreign substance during a check at the start of the ninth inning.
Díaz and manager Carlos Mendoza pleaded their case with crew chief Vic Carapazza but were unsuccessful. He was ejected before throwing a pitch.
“I just say I use the same thing always; I use rosin and sweat, and I put my hand in the dirt a little bit because I need some grip on the ball,” Díaz told reporters.
“I was really surprised because I didn’t have anything on my hand, my glove, my belt. They always check my hat, everything.”
Close-up camera shots revealed the presence of a substance on Díaz’s hand.
“My hands look like that always,” Díaz said. “I put my hand in the dirt, that’s why my hand looked dirty.”
Díaz now faces an automatic 10-game suspension.
“It definitely wasn’t rosin and sweat,” Carapazza said. “We’ve checked thousands of these. I know what that feeling is. This was very sticky.
“I told him it’s too sticky and we have to take action. I knew right when I touched it. It was way too sticky.”
The two-time Reliever of the Year has 33 strikeouts with a 12.9 K/9 rate in 23 games this season, with a 4.70 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. He also had time on the injured list with a shoulder issue.
Drew Smith replaced Díaz and recorded two outs. Jake Diekman entered for a one-out save, securing a 5-2 victory for New York.
